Get Your Shot
by AnimeGirl 144
Summary: The KND is going to owe her big time for making her keep an eye on the Common Cold. Why is Fuse suddenly taking an interest in him anyways, and why is the Earth alliance determined to not let him fall into the alien's hands? Features OC. Has lite (super-lite) Chad/OC.
1. The Mission

**Somehow this idea came to mind when I was walking to one of my classes, and for weeks I've been fleshing it out in my mind. It still needs some kinks worked out, but I thought it'd be interesting.**

**It also pulls away from the "hero-is-chosen-to-save-the-world-from-Fuse" type stories in this section (no I'm not mocking them; I have my own story like that, remember?).**

**I also wanted to use Ariana in a FusionFall story, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity.**

**So sit back, relax, and enjoy the story.**

**Everything but Ariana belongs to somebody who's name isn't AnimeGirl 144.**

* * *

The Kids Next Door were going to owe her big time. Seriously.

Ariana stood before the Supreme Leaduh of the Kids Next Door and Numbuh Infinity, listening to them as they explain what they wanted her to do.

"You want me to escort a villain of yours to _your_ Arctic Base?" Ariana questioned, interrupting them. "Why wasn't he in there already?"

"And as for your reasons, "We were attempting to use a sample of his DNA to find a cure against him," Numbuh Infinity answered. "And you are correct."

"And why would I do that?" Ariana asked. "Shouldn't you have one of your own operatives do it?"

"All our operatives can't be spared," Numbuh 362 answered.

Ariana's eyes narrowed a little, not believing a word of it.

"I see," Ariana commented, keeping her tone as neutral as possible.

"If they were, we would have called upon them already," Numbuh Infinity responded. "I am afraid that we do not have operatives to spare, and you are one of the few teenagers we can trust to assist us."

"And what makes you think I can do your job?" Ariana questioned, placing an accompanying hand on her hip, her only indicator of attitude.

"You are one of the best, and your skills in battle will provide him protection," the sun-glass-wearing operative said.

"You think we'll fall into combat situation?" Ariana questioned, narrowing her eyes suspiciously.

"You may," Numbuh Infinity provided.

"Fuse has already attempted to break the Common Cold out of our holding cells several times. Fuse is desperate to get his hands on him," Numbuh 362 added.

"Miss Zenworth, believe me when I say that he cannot fall into Fuse's hands," Numbuh Infinity continued. "The consequences can be dire."

"Fine," the purple-haired teenager said. "I'll do your job and bring the villain to the base."

"Excellent. We'll set you up-"

"But I do have a question for you," Ariana broke in.

"Yes?" Numbuh Infinity asked, a little surprised that she'd ask something in return.

"Have you been able to find Chad?" the girl asked. "Have you heard word from him?"

"No, not since his disappearance in Downtown," the Galactic Kids Next Door operative answered.

"I see," she responded.

"Is that it?" Numbuh Infinity asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes," the teenager responded.

"Very well. I'll send a message down to the hangar to equip you with one of our vehicles and have one of our operatives show you how to use it," Numbuh 362 said.

"Right," Ariana said with a nod.

"Numbuh 86, lead her to the hangar," Numbuh 362 ordered.

"Of course ma'am," the operative said, escorting the teenager.

* * *

"I can't believe we have to protect this stupid adult," Numbuh 86 complained to the fellow female that she was escorting to the hangar. "It is unbelievable! And they're making you do it too! I don't mean to question my leaduh's decisions, but I don't understand her reasoning for this!"

"Me either," Ariana responded distractedly.

"And the Common Cold no less!" Numbuh 86 continued. "I mean honestly! Of all the villains. I just don't understand why Numbuh 362 couldn't have sent a boy to go do this."

"Because you never said a boy to do a girl's job," Ariana responded, knowing exactly the response she would receive.

Numbuh 86 nodded her head in agreement.

"Aye. It's true," she responded, just as the two entered the hangar. "I would come with ya if I could, but I'm needed here on the base."

"It's fine," Ariana said, waving away Numbuh 86's concern. "Which one am I using?"

"I don't-" Numbuh 86 stopped mid-sentence when she noticed an operative waving madly at the two of them. "Is that Numbuh Two?"

Ariana followed the operative's line of sight and found Numbuh Two hopping around, waving his hands wildly.

"Yeah. He must have our ride," Ariana said. "Why else would he be waving around like a lunatic?"

"Because he's a boy?" Numbuh 86 chimed in, just to get another jab in towards the male gender as she followed the teenager over to Numbuh Two.

"Hey girls," Numbuh Two greeted when the two were close; he knew how much Numbuh 86 hated to be referred to as a guy, and to avoid a conflict, he just took the safe route.

"I'm guessing you're providing me with my vehicle?" Ariana asked, bypassing the greeting.

"Yeah. I just got here not too long ago, and Numbuh 362 called me and told me to give you the guide on how to drive one of our vehicles. She figured you'd listen to me since we know each other," the navigator answered.

"So which one is it?" Ariana questioned.

"The only one we can space is this," Numbuh Two said, patting the hood of the vehicle he stood in front of. It looked like a modified school bus. "This here is the C.O.O.L.-B.U.S. (Carries Operatives' Overhead Luxuriously - Boosts Unbeatable Speed). It's the KND's generic mode of transportation. This is all we can spare."

"It's big for just two people," Ariana commented as she viewed the exterior of the vehicle. "Am I transporting anyone else?"

"Nope. It's big enough for you and the Common Cold to have space," Numbuh Two explained. "That way, you won't get sick from him."

"Mhm," Ariana hummed as she continued to study the flying vehicle.

"C'mon inside," Numbuh Two said as he made his way to the entrance of the vechicle. "I gotta show you how it works."

Ariana followed Numbuh Two inside, and Numbuh 86 stood just at the steps, listening in and providing her own comments when she felt it was appropriate. The controls were simple enough to remember, and the thing practically ran on autopilot.

"I don't think you'll have trouble with it," Numbuh Two said, wrapping up his presentation. "You should be good to go."

"And wouldn't you know, just in time," Ariana commented, looking over Numbuh Two's shoulder.

Two KND operatives, wearing masks over their nose and mouths obviously to avoid getting germs, were walking the Common Cold to the C.O.O.L.-B.U.S.. The villain, for the most part, looked annoyed, and he sniffled upon showing up at the doors.

"I gotta travel in this rusty thing?" Common Cold questioned as he was forced on board.

"Don't act like this is enjoyable for everyone," Ariana muttered.

"Just follow my instructions, and you should be fine Ariana," Numbuh Two said, patting Ariana's shoulder in comfort.

Ariana hummed, watching the operatives sit the Common Cold at the back of the transportation.

"He's ready for transport," one of the operatives said.

"No mask?" Ariana asked.

"I'm afraid not, but he's far enough away for you to not catch his germs," the other operative said.

"Mhm," Ariana hummed once more, eying the Common Cold. "I guess we're ready for take off."

The two operatives nodded and walked out of the bus without another word. Numbuh Two gave a two fingered salute to the teenager and headed out of the transport.

"Good luck ma'am," Numbuh 86 said with a salute.

"Thanks," Ariana said to the operative's retreating back.

When all Kids Next Door operatives were out of the bus, Ariana hardly glanced at her travel partner and instead sat in the driver's seat. Starting up the C.O.O.L.-B.U.S., Ariana got the clearance she needed and headed out of the hangar.


	2. Battle With a Fusion

**Onwards to chapter two.**

* * *

"Does this flight have an inflight entertainment?" the Common Cold asked from the back of the C.O.O.L.-B.U.S..

"Yes, it's called the window," Ariana responded, checking her location on her NanoCom.

"You're no fun," Common Cold commented.

"I know you can't see it, but I'm giving you my I-don't-care look," Ariana responded.

"...Are you sure you're not a villain?" Common Cold questioned.

"Positive," the teenager responded, continuing to look at the path ahead of her.

"Could have fooled me."

"Kindly be quiet," Ariana responded, glancing at her NanoCom and narrowing her eyes at it.

_This isn't right,_ she thought to herself as she glanced up around her. _Where are they?_

The flu-inspired villain pouted as he looked out of the window. He was upset that he was being ignored by a teenager. He was a feared villain for Pete's sake! He wasn't even noticing how his driver kept looking around. It wasn't until he felt something hit the back, right next to his head, that he realized something was off. Ariana released a growl and turned the C.O.O.L.-B.U.S. sharply, sending Common Cold across seat and onto the aisle way.

"Owh! What are you doing!"

"I'm saving your life you moron, so shut up and let me drive!" Ariana shouted.

"Saving my life?!" Common Cold demanded. "From what?!"

At that moment, the back door opened, and a shrill alarm went off. Standing at the entrance was Fusion Buttercup. The flying Fusion snarled in hate, her red eyes trained on the villain on the ground who was frozen in fear.

"That," Ariana snarled, pulling out her Foster's F-Blade from her NanoCom's subspace.

She shoved the vehicle to autopilot and lunched at the Fusion, slicing at her before the alien could touch the frozen-in-his-spot villain. Fusion Buttercup hissed and scratched at Ariana, finding her attempts blocked by the blade of Ariana's sword.

"Move!" Ariana ordered. "I can't fight her off if you don't give me any room to fight her with!"

"R-r-right!" the villain stuttered, scooting backwards as quickly as possible.

With more room to fight, Ariana was able to better defend her position and keep the Fusion from entering the aircraft. However, the Fusion wasn't letting up, and mustering whatever stolen power it had obtained from her counterpart's item, she fought her way into the aircraft. Ariana was still a wall between the two, keeping the Common Cold safe from the Fusion's claws. Everything seemed to be going fine, until the front was hit, causing the vehicle to jerk. Ariana turned to see laser blasts hit the hull once more, jerking the vehicle once more.

"We're being hit!" Common Cold shrieked.

"I can see that," Ariana stated with an irritated tone.

Fusion Buttercup used the distraction to her advantaged and sliced at Ariana's arm, drawing blood from the four scratches. Ariana hissed in pain and struck at the Fusion with her sword, slicing her in the stomach. The Fusion cried out in pain, and while distracted, Ariana kicked the Fusion out of the flying aircraft. The teenager raced back to the front, trying to control the vehicle but it was hit by another blast, this one causing the dashboard to static out, and the electricity had jumped to Ariana's NanoCom, shocking it. Ariana glanced up for a moment to see the aircraft flying away, but she was forced to look back at the dashboard when it began to make strange noises. It shortened out, and almost immediately, the vehicle began to take a nosedive downward.

"Hold onto something!" Ariana shouted as she attempted to right the vehicle, for all the good that'd do.

Common Cold hid under the front seat, letting the metal plating next to the door, keep him in place. Ariana closes her eyes only a second before the bus hit the ground. The vehicle skidded forward before losing momentum and coming to a stop. Ariana coughed as she looked over the damage done. She attempted to turn the C.O.O.L.-B.U.S. back on, but it wouldn't start.

"Fantastic," she snarled, slamming her palm on the steering wheel. "Are you alive back there?"

The villain poked his head up from his hiding spot, looking paler than was common.

"Am I dead? Is this heaven?" the man asked. "I hope not; I don't want to be stuck with you any longer."

"Oh shut up," Ariana snapped, getting up out of the seat.

She grabbed at her NanoCom, but it wouldn't respond to her touch. She shook her head, and instead went searching about the area for some equipment.

"What are you doing?"

"Getting some equipment," Ariana responded.

"For what?" the villain questioned.

"My NanoCom is down, which means I have no form of communication. So, I am looking for something," she responded.

"How will you know what you're looking for?"

"I'm friends with the ex-Soopreme Leaduh," Ariana responded. "I've come into contact more than once with KND technology."

She opened an overhead compartment and found a W.H.A.T. (Wreadily Handles All Transmissions). She began to adjust the headset and found a connection to the KND Artic Base.

"Who is this?!" the voice on the other end demanded.

"A messenger, apparently. I'm supposed to be delivering you the Common Cold, but we've been attacked by a Fusion and we're by-" Ariana paused to look out the window. "We're by Galaxy Gardens. I'm going to try to find a transportation to take us to the base. Don't wait up for us."

She ended the connection at that point, sliding the headset to sit it around her neck. She went back to her seat to grab her sword. Without her NanoCom working, she'd have to hold onto it.

"Come on," she said to her passenger. "We have to find some shelter because at the moment, we're sitting ducks to that Fusion, and probably her friends."

The villain nodded in agreement, though he motioned to his cuffed hands.

"Mind taking them off for the trip?"

Ariana raised an eyebrow at the request.

"Hey, I'm not much use like this. And besides, I can't exactly run to anyone. I don't have my weapon on me," Common Cold argued.

Ariana sighed and shook her head.

"I'm only doing this because I don't want you to be a burden for me," she responded, raising her sword.

"Whoa whoa whoa! Don't you have a-a-a-a-achu!" the villain sneezed.

Ariana winced, glaring at the villain. He offered a shrug, and before he could open his mouth, Ariana sliced the cuffs in half. He rubbed his wrists with a smile.

"Thanks. Now, where are we going to hide? Dexlabs?" Common Cold asked, following Ariana outside.

"Nope," she said, not bothering to look back over her shoulder. "To Mandark Industries."


	3. Hideout

**Continuing on with chapter three.**

* * *

"Mandark's?" Common Cold asked as he followed the purple-haired girl. "Who's that?"

"A genius, in his own mind, but he's an arrogant twerp with an even bigger ego," Ariana responded, gazing to her left and right periodically as she walked towards Mandark's Ind.. The regular Fusion Monsters barely gave them a look, and Ariana made sure to keep out of their line of sight. "He's Dexter's rival, and the two are evenly matched, except Mandark's methods are less ethical."

"Then why are we going to him?" Common Cold questioned.

"Because he's the only one I can trust at the moment," she responded, not bothering to respond to the villain's gasp of surprise. "Keep up."

* * *

"Lord Mandark," a Mandroid droned as it rolled next to Mandark's chair. "There are guests at the front door, demanding to be let in."

The evil genius looked over at the Mandroid with a raised eyebrow. The teen then brought up the security feed from the front door. He held in a groan when he saw Ariana pounding her fist against the metal door while a pathetic looking villain looked around his surroundings behind her.

"Let me in Mandork. I know you can hear me," Ariana demanded.

"Shall I remove them from the premises?" the Mandroid asked.

"No," the teenager sighed out. "She'll just turn you to scraps and then I'll have to make another. Let her in."

The Mandroid placed its arm across the chest, the closest to a bow it could muster, before it rolled off to the front door. It opened the door as commanded, and found an annoyed teenager girl on the other side.

"Take me to Susan," she ordered.

"Lord Mandark-"

"Take me to Susan, _now_," she threatened, holding up the tip of her Foster's Blade to its neck unit.

The Mandroid paused for a moment before rolling away, motioning for the two guests to follow. Ariana shoved the Common Cold into the building first before following behind. The mini-trip to Mandark's location was quiet and uneventful, and the teenage girl didn't bother to thank the robot for its assistance once she caught sight of Mandark.

"To what do I owe this unwelcomed visit?" Mandark sighed.

"You worked with Dexter on making this," Ariana started, grabbing her NanoCom and placing it on Mandark's computer panel. "Fix it."

"Is that it?" Mandark asked, and then pointed to Common Cold. "And why is he here?"

"No, that's not it. We'll need an unregistered vehicle that the Earth Alliance doesn't know about," Ariana continued. "And he's here because I was in charge of taking him to the Artic Base where he won't cause trouble to our cause."

"Him? What trouble could he do?" Mandark asked, grabbing the NanoCom and tweaking with the device.

"He can make everyone on this planet sick with a nasty virus for a good week," Ariana responded, leaning on his chair and looking over his shoulder at her device. "Now with everyone out sick, Fuse's forces would take the Earth without a fight. This makes him valuable to Fuse, but dangerous to Earth."

Mandark's eyes widened behind his glasses. He gave a nod as he began to repair the NanoCom.

"I see...and you brought him to me because...?"

"You're the only one I can trust at the moment," Ariana responded with a shrug.

"Not even the KND? I know they hate teenagers, but usually they're compliant with us when it comes to the war?" Mandark questioned, not taking his eyes off of his work.

"They've been infiltrated by spies; I'm guessing Father and his Teen Ninjas," Ariana responded with yet another shrug.

"What?!" both villains asked, looking at her in surprise.

"It was somewhat obvious, since they've never relied on my services before. So, to test my theory, I questioned them about Chad; Numbuh Infinity, who is Chad's direct line to the GKND, should have known about where Chad disappeared," Ariana explained. "He fell in Hero's Hollow. Numbuh Infinity, the one I talked to, answered that he disappeared in Downtown. That mistake assured me that Numbuh Infinity, and perhaps Numbuh 362, were infiltrated."

"What exactly does this mean?" Common Cold asked, looking a little startled by the revelation.

"It means you're the most wanted man on planet Earth," Ariana responded with a shrug, making it sound like the most obvious statement in the world.

"That's... that's not good," Common Cold responded.

"Understatement of the year," Mandark seethed at the adult.

He tinkered the back of the NanoCom faster, sticking his tongue out as he did so.

"What are you doing now?" Ariana asked, looking at the genius critically.

"Taking out the locator in the device," Mandark responded. "When these were mass produced, Dexter installed a locator chip into each of them, so that he could track where everyone was at any time. He's tracking you as we speak, so I need to take it out before you two go out on a journey again."

Ariana nodded, soothed that he wasn't damaging her NanoCom more than what it had already suffered. Only the Common Cold seemed to not understand what was going on.

"Why are you helping us?" he asked. "I mean, your laboratory reeks of evilness. And you're a teenager! Shouldn't you be hindering us?"

"You're right, I should. But since Dexter is involved, I'm going to help you two, just to get back at that carrot-top," Mandark answered, keeping his eyes on his work. "It'll be the one up over him that I need."

"O-okay," Common Cold responded, sounding perplexed.

"Him and Dexter have a hate-hate relationship," Ariana supplied for the villain. "They like to compete against each other, even though they collaborate a lot for the war."

"Do not!" Mandark responded indignantly.

Ariana scoffed.

"Right," she said. "Sure you don't. That explains why you had a public fit when Dexter didn't give you credit when the NanoComs were revealed.

"I..." Mandark paused when he realized he was caught and sent her a scowl. "Shut up Zenworth."

Ariana chuckled lightly, and opened her mouth to make a statement. She was stopped by the computer screen flickering, and a face appeared. Mandark placed down his instruments to stare at the screen. Common Cold stepped away from the computer, trying to get out of the line of sight. Ariana turned her attention towards computer screen and crossed her arms, sending a blank look in its direction.

"Dexter."


	4. Captured

**Only one chapter to go.**

* * *

"Hello," the red headed genius greeted. "I see my Dexbots were correct when they informed me about your arrival to Mandark's laboratory. Tell me; is something wrong that needs my assistance?"

"Nothing requires your help," Ariana responded.

"Are you sure? Your NanoCom's locator seems to be malfunctioning. I can't seem to find it anywhere on my radar," Dexter continued.

"That's because _I _took it out," Mandark answered. "I didn't want you buddying into affairs that aren't yours to butt into."

"I'm sorry?" Dexter questioned, raising an eyebrow expectantly.

"He means, I don't want you tracking my whereabouts and shoot me out of the sky like you did earlier," Ariana responded.

Her statement caused all three males to look at her in shock. She wasn't fazed by their looks, and continued to stare Dexter down.

"What?" Dexter questioned.

"While I was fighting the Fusion, I noticed a drone of yours shooting at the front of the KND's aircraft," Ariana answered, looking at him evenly. "Am I to assume you were attempting to help us but you missed and hit our vehicle by mistake?"

Dexter remained silent at the accusation. He lowered his head, removing his glasses. When he placed it back on, he sighed, looking at her with regret on his face.

"I hadn't known you would be involved," Dexter responded. "When Numbuh 362 talked about it with me, I was under the assumption that a random operative would be on board. I hadn't known you would be."

Ariana scoffed.

"Oh please. Don't act like we're buddies and you'd regret what would happen to me," Ariana said. "When did you start working alongside the KND?"

"I'm not working with them," he responded. "Only this one time. The Common Cold is a threat to the war. He can undermine our whole cause."

"Doesn't matter," she responded. "He's still a person, and your interference could have killed us."

"I am sorry about that," Dexter responded, "and this. But I have to do what I must to protect the Earth, Ariana. You understand, right?"

"I understand, but I don't agree," Ariana answered. "Real mission or not, I'm bringing Common Cold to the Artic Prison."

"Then you've left me with no choice," Dexter sighed before his image flickered off the screen.

"What does he mean by that?" Common Cold asked, looking around in fear.

"Hopefully it's not what I think it means," Mandark responded.

As the last syllable left his mouth, a warning siren sounded throughout the building. Ariana glared and grabbed her NanoCom, shoving her back on her belt.

"Do me a favor and don't open your mouth next time," Ariana said in Mandark's direction, wielding her melee.

"I didn't mean to!" Mandark argued back as he grabbed his weapon.

"Uhhh...guys? I'm kind of...weaponless," Common Cold spoke up.

"Stick close to me and sneeze at anything that isn't me, Mandark, or his little toy robots."

"They are _not_ toys!" Mandark shouted.

"Focus," Ariana snapped, crouching behind one of the consoles.

Mandark fumed at the back of Ariana's head, but did as she said and focused on the task at hand. Common Cold panicked when he heard lasers hitting the various walls of Mandark's business. He dove under the computer console for safety. Checking to be sure that Common Cold would be alright where he hid, Ariana focused on the sounds. A loud bang sounded a second later, indicating that they'd cut their way through. Ariana gripped the hilt of her weapon tighter, waiting for the sounds to approach before she'd attack.

Unfortunately, Mandark didn't have the same idea as her, and he lunged forward. He began firing at the intruders. Ariana cursed his name under her breath and jumped from her position, slicing at the Dexbots that came after her.

"You idiot! You blew my cover!" she snarled.

"Me?! I was defending myself!" Mandark argued.

"No, you blew my cover by jumping before we could surprise them!" Ariana shouted, kicking a Dexbot in the face.

"It's not my fault! I had to protect my lab!" Mandark shouted. "It's all I have."

"Drama queen," Ariana sighed to herself as she kicked another Dexbot.

"HELP!" Common Cold shouted, doing his best to keep the bots away by sneezing.

"Useless. Every last one of you," Ariana grumbled, running over and slicing the bot's neck off.

"Hey! My sneezes only work on humans and such. Not robots!" Common Cold argued, defending himself.

"Useless," Ariana repeated.

"Behind you!" Common Cold shouted.

Ariana turned, just barely missing the punch headed for her. She managed to get away from it, but felt an electrical shock run through her body, causing her to collapse to the floor. She looked up long enough to see Common Cold tackled to the floor, and Mandark get knocked out by a punch to the face. She made to move again, but was electrocuted once more, causing her to fall unconscious.

* * *

When Ariana came to, she found herself in a holding cell. Dexlabs holding cell.

"Fantastic," she snarled under her breath.

She jumped to her feet and walked towards the cell door. It was an energy field, so she wouldn't be getting out under conventional means. She looked around for her items, but growled in annoyance when she saw that they were taken from her. The door directly across from her, the main door as she recalled, opened, and Dexter stepped in.

"You're awake," Dexter commented.

"Obvious much?" Ariana questioned.

Dexter sighed heavily.

"Listen, I'm not trying to be the bad guy here. I'm just doing what I have to do for the war," Dexter explained his position. "You can't fault me for that."

"And you can't fault me when I get up and get out of here with Common Cold," Ariana countered, crossing her arms to look foreboding.

"And how do you purpose you'd do that?" Dexter questioned.

"If I tell you, then you'll stop me," Ariana countered.

"I'll give you that," Dexter sighed. "I'll come back to free you two when I'm done dealing with the Common Cold."

Ariana glowered as Dexter turned and headed for the door. Before he could exit, however, the whole building shook. The force woke Mandark up, throwing him off the bench he had been thrown on.

"What's going on!?" Dexter asked, slamming his fist on the intercom.

"We're under attack!" a Dexbot responded over the line.

"By who!?" Dexter asked, looking over at Ariana.

The purple-haired teen remained impassive. She didn't have a clue on who had come to attack Dexlabs, but she wasn't going to let Dexter know that.

"We don't know sir," the Dexbot replies.

"I'm on my way!" Dexter said, turning off the intercom.

He stalked over to Ariana's holding cell.

"Who is it?"

"Why would I tell you?"

"You're going to ruin everything!" Dexter shouted. "You'll cause our side to lose!"

"I won't do anything," Ariana responded back calmly, "except get that adult to the prison cell, where he belongs."

Dexter sighed in frustration. He wasn't going to get anything out of Ariana, nothing new or important at least, so he decided to leave her to her cell while he went to figure out what was happening to his laboratory.

"Who is here?" Mandark asked once the door was closed.

"I don't know," Ariana responded. "But he better be on our side."


	5. Artic Base

**My last and final chapter of the story.**

* * *

"Report!" Dexter ordered when he entered his main laboratory room.

"An intruder has entered through the Weapons Facility," Computress reported in her robotic tone. "The intruder has also destroyed the manufacturing line."

Dexter's eyes widened at the revelation, and he furiously pounded on the nearest keyboard. If the Dexbots had the capability to feel fear, they would have jumped in startlment at Dexter's outburst.

"Damn it! I want this person found, immediately! Before he has the chance to bring down my company!" Dexter ordered, glaring at the computer screen that continued to flash "Alert."

"We're tracking his heat signature now," a Dexbot reported. "We'll compare it with our library once we've got it."

"Move faster!" Dexter demanded.

"Dexter, I am tracking his path. He is headed for the holding cells," Computress announced to her builder.

"He's what?" Dexter questioned, rounding on his assistant.

* * *

"This is unfair! How is it so easy for some nobody to enter Dexlabs, but it's taken me forever to do so!" Mandark complained.

"Do me a favor and shut the hell up," Ariana snapped, listening for sounds from the outside.

A minute later, the door blew open, causing Mandark and Ariana to cover their eyes.

"Need a hero?" a cocky voice questioned from the opened door.

"Why yes we do," Ariana said. "But I guess you'll have to do."

Chad, the rescuer to the two, walked over, smirking to himself.

"You're an ungrateful princess," Chad commented as he walked over to the security pad on the side of the cells.

"Open the cell and I'll show you how _grateful_ I am," Ariana said with a dangerous smirk on her face.

"You're just lucky I already planned on getting you out of here before that comment," Chad said as he placed a small device on the pad.

"Can you two stop your bantering for a moment and _get me out of here!_" Mandark demanded from his place in the cell.

"He may be more ungrateful than you," Chad said with a smirk.

He placed a similar device on the pad by Mandark's cell and tapped the middle of the two devices, then took a step back. Ariana mirrored his movement and took a step back herself. Mandark jumped to the opposite side of the wall. The pads were short-circuited, and the shields fell, smoking a little from the overcharge.

"We ready to go?"

"I've got a prisoner that needs rescuing," Ariana responded as she stepped out of her cell.

She walked to the table at the side of the room and grabbed her NanoCom, equipping it to her waist and pulling out her sword.

"Right. He's probably in the next room over. Let's get going before-"

"Freeze!"

"Man that Russian kid runs fast," Chad commented.

He turned to see Dexter holding up one of Dexlabs' branded gun. The red head was panting heavily, no doubt from the run he had to do from the main room to the cell room. The pistol was aimed directly at Chad's chest.

"I am not Russian," Dexter snapped. "Now hands up!"

"Sorry kid. Didn't want to have to do this..." Chad commented as he held up his hands.

A Grapeade Grenade appeared in his hand, and in the blink of an eye, he threw it at the genius. The weapon exploded in front of Dexter, blinding the genius. Chad ran forward and kneed Dexter in the jaw. The force pushed the genius to the wall, knocking his head against the steel walls. The combined forces from the front and back knocked the teenager out, and his body slumped.

"Let's go while he's out," Chad mentioned to the two.

"Did you honestly just say that to me?" Ariana questioned.

"You bet I did. Let's go," Chad responded, running out of the room and into the hallway.

Ariana and Mandark followed the blond teenager down the hallway and into a room not too far from where they were being held. There, they found the Common Cold knocked out on an observation table. Chad cut the metal cuffs off with a laser beam from his pointer, and with Mandark's help, dragged him out of the room.

"Back outside. I've got a ride that'll get us to wherever we need to go," Chad ordered as he and Mandark continued to drag Common Cold down the hallway, and past Dexter's slumped body.

"Do you have a sixth sense that knows when I need help, or were you following us?" Ariana asked.

"Actually, it was Numbuh Infinity that brought me here," Chad responded as they ran. "He went off the radar for a while, which is surprising, so I went and found him locked up with Numbuh 362. When I contacted the Moonbase and asked for Numbuh 362, Numbuh 86 already said she was in, and that she'd sent you off with Common Cold. So I hoped into my nifty cruiser and went off to find you. Your NanoCom going off line didn't exactly help but the result worked out fine, so I guess I can't complain."

"Move faster before Dorkster decides he's done taking a nap!" Mandark barked.

"Relax four eyes, we're here," Chad responded as the four came to the hole he had blasted through.

Mandark glowered at the back of Chad's head, but stayed silent as he helped the teenager place the Common Cold in the S.C.A.M.P.E.R.. The three teens then hopped in, and they took off.

"We'll be in the Artic Base in no time," Chad announced.

"Is this unmarked?" Ariana asked.

"Dexter won't be able to track us by radar, if that's what you mean," Chad answered.

"It is," the girl responded with a nod, before heading to the back where Common Cold and Mandark were. "How's he look?"

"I'm not a doctor," Mandark responded.

"No duh," Ariana scoffed. "But you have two eyes. So, how's he look?"

"He looks fine. He was probably just knocked out and given a sleeping syrum to keep him down," Mandark answered with a scowl set on his face. "He'll be out for a long time is my guess.

"Good. Getting him into his prison cell will go a lot faster without him kicking and screaming," Ariana nodded in satisfaction.

A loud beeping noise sounded throughout the hub, drawing the attention of the gathered teens.

"Dexter," they all said aloud as one.

Ariana stepped over to the communication station and pulled up the radio feed from Dexter's little cruiser.

"What do you want?" Ariana asked over the line, annoyed that he'd woken up; Chad's fighting skills were useless.

"Stand down! I don't want to have to shoot you down, but I will if you don't follow my order!" Dexter shouted over his headpiece.

"Listen, either talk like a normal person, or I'll hang up," Ariana responded cooly.

"I will shoot you down if it means survival for the Earth," Dexter growled into the line.

"We will still win with him alive," Ariana snapped coldly. "Let him stay in prison, where it's proven that the Fusions won't go to, and we'll be fine."

"I am not leaving the Earth up to chance," Dexter snapped.

"So you're going to kill a person? You've never done that before, and now you're going to start?" Ariana responded back. "You're willing to throw away your entire ethics just because of a silly emotional reaction?! You're a man of science, aren't you? Think logically for once."

There was silence on the other end of the line, and for a moment, Ariana wondered if Dexter had given up and was getting ready to strike them down. But then, Dexter's voice came over the line.

"Very well," he says tightly. "You've made your point. Deliever him to the Kids Next Door, but we will have a talk about helping a criminal."

"Fine," Ariana responded before she shut off the line. "We're clear to go. Dexter will be tailing us the entire way, but he won't harm us."

"Good. Let's get within the artic vicinity before a Fusion catches onto us," Chad stated, pushing the limit on the S.C.A.M.P.E.R..

* * *

The two aircrafts landed inside the Artic Base, and their occupants exited. A few KND officers helped drag the Common Cold out of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. and take him to his designated cell.

"Thank you for your help," Numbuh 60, the operative in charge, said as he greeted Chad, Ariana, and Mandark.

"It was my job," Ariana responded with a shrug.

"I just don't understand how those two were able to get into the Moonbase," Numbuh 60 said with furrowed brows.

"Those two?" Dexter asked as he rounded on the small group. "Who are you talking about?"

"Father and Cree. They infiltrated the Moonbase and took on Numbuh Infinity's and Numbuh 362's identities," Numbuh 60 responded to the genius.

Dexter's eyes widened considerably behind his glasses.

"Then... Those two were who I was speaking to...?" Dexter asks aloud.

"Were Father and Cree. They tricked you into believing that they wanted Common Cold dead," Ariana answered calmly.

Dexter lowered his head slightly as he took in the information. The look of shame crossed his face for a second before he recovered himself.

"I see. You were right then Ariana," Dexter said. "Had I continued with my plan, I would have killed... well, not an innocent life, but I would have caused unnecessary deaths."

"You have to be more careful of who you trust," Ariana responded. "If something doesn't add up, then chances are, something's off. Never take anything for face value."

Dexter nodded, and then turned away to head back to his aircraft.

"I have to head back to my lab; there's still a hole in the wall to fix," Dexter stated as he walked away.

No apology, though Ariana wasn't expecting one. Dexter was too proud for that, and there was no way one would be issued with Mandark standing close by. The teenager didn't dwell on the fact and instead focused her attention to Chad.

"Let's get going so we can drop him off," Ariana stated, nodding her head in Mandark's direction.

"Oh, so you can reward me in private?" Chad asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Shut up Dickson," Ariana responded, heading into the S.C.A.M.P.E.R..

"Oh c'mon, I think I deserve a little kiss since I rescued you and flew you all the way over here," Chad responded as he climbed in as well.

Mandark followed up and scoffed.

"Do not attempt anything lovey dovey in my prescense," Mandark demanded.

"Oh shut up, bowl cut," Ariana snapped as she sat in her seat. "You'd demand kisses from DeeDee all the time."

Mandark blushed, sputtering a little as he attempts to speak.

"I-I would not!"

"Liar," Chad and Ariana say at the same time while the door is shut on its own.

Numbuh 60 watched the aircraft leave and waited till it was gone before he allowed himself to let out a sigh.

"Teenagers are crazy."

* * *

**That's it folks. I will take this time to quickly promote one of my new stories: **_Exonaut Battles_**. I'm using elements of Project Exonaut, but I'm creating a different storyline using it. Check it out on my profile if you're interested.**


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